Banana Slug

Here is a post about another big Mollusk. Mollusks are a group of animals that have no backbone (invertebrate), have soft bodies, and often have some type of shell. Snails, clams, octopus, oysters and slugs are some examples of Mollusks.

Banana Slugs (Ariolimax columbianus) are North America’s largest slug, reaching up to 9 inches long. They are named for the color of their body which can vary from bright yellow to brown. Some even look like a bruised banana, yellow with brown spots. You can find them in wet, cool forests from the central coast of California all the way up to Alaska. If you are on the hunt for a Banana Slug in your backyard or a local park, look in moist areas, under leaves, and by fallen logs. (Just make sure you leave no trace!)

Banana slugs cover their body in slime to help prevent them from drying out. They also use the slime to help them move, stick to things, and even to communicate with other slugs. When a predator, such as a Garter Snake, decides to have a Banana Slug for lunch, they are in for a mouthful of slime that causes their mouth to go numb!

Like the Moon Snails we learned about a few days ago, Banana Slugs have a radula. Instead of using it to drill holes in clams, Banana Slugs use their radula to munch up fallen leaves and other parts of plants. They help turn it into soil so more plants can grow. Do you know what animals are called when they eat dead plants and turn those plants into soil? Answer the bonus question at the end of the quiz!